Here's a statement of the obvious: The opinions expressed here are those of the participants, not those of the Mutual Fund Observer. We cannot vouch for the accuracy or appropriateness of any of it, though we do encourage civility and good humor.
Reply to @msf: You are right about FICDX. We sold that last year and moved those dollars to DWGIX, because we liked the unorthodox investment style as well as the emphasis on dividend. Yes, we have to make comparisons somehow before we select a ma…
Reply to @msf: What you say is true, msf. But for those of us who are style-box agnostic, the fund comparisons and rankings are deceptive when M* forces a fund into one of their created boxes when it does not fit in a box. I have spoken with a num…
I don't think there is any question about their status, based on our discussions with Artio. They will manage until the takeover is official, and then they are gone. Of course, this could change. But given their lack of success the last four year…
Another FWIW, but we do not insist managers stay in a box. If they wander small-to-mid, even an occasional large company, that's ok. Same with whether M* says they are value,blend or growth. I don't trust that pigeonholing, anyway. Here are the …
It would be prudent for investors to use a diversified allocation AND use a conservative return expectation. We seldom use anything greater than 5% in our projections. If the future turns out better than projected, no one will be disappointed. It…
One option I have not seen mentioned in this thread is GASFX. If the production and use of natural gas continues at its present pace, and I think it will, this fund could do very well. Yield of about 2.6%, low expenses, low turnover, low minimum i…
Hi Max. You might want to consider dividing your EM-specific bond dollars into local currency and dollar-based bonds. If current trends continue, local bonds will do better, even though there will be moments of "flight to safety". And flows into …
We run our cash flow projections to age 100, and we have found that 4-5% has been a consistently good number. Our clients who have been with us for 10-15-20 years can look at their individual numbers and see that as realistic. We use 3% inflation …
Keep in mind that others have said essentially the same thing for years, and they have been woefully wrong. And some have been predicting total economic collapse. Woe to those who have been suckered into that mindset. I am not saying we will have…
I for one am not convined of the accuracy of this data. Everything I have seen tells us that, while no-load funds have increased their share, it is nothing like this study indicates. Since the data is coming from fund companies, and since not all …
We always tell our clients that we are not buying funds, we are hiring managers. We expect the same kind of relationship from the managers we hire as our clients expect of us: honesty, promptness in returning calls, listen to us, give us the inform…
Reply to @MikeM: Hi MikeM. 4-5 years ago we decided to use a 50/50 mix of domestic bonds to international bonds. This obviously was a lucky guess, since those non-U.S. bonds have been real winners. The only problem was that domestic bond managers…
The team at Marketfield is one smart group. Aronstein has made a lot of good, early calls over the years. Owning a manager who does not agree with my own views on sectors and world regions is very positive. MFLDX is a core hold in our alternative…
I especially liked Carl Kaufman (OSTIX) on high-yield bonds. "High-yield bonds are the best looking horse in the glue factory." I think that says it all. With few exceptions, we are using bond funds that have very flexible mandates. With Vanguar…
Hussman is still proclaiming collapse is just around the corner, but he is one of the very few remaining. Unfortunately for those who put faith in him, they would have fared better in almost any other kind of fund. Natural resources and precious m…
Reply to @msf: I do not disagree with your point, but what I was attempting to say is that perhaps it is time to put someone in charge who is NOT an attorney, who has NO ties to banks and brokerage houses, and who has EXPERIENCE and UNDERSTANDS wha…
Heaven forbid that someone with knowledge of the investment advisory business might be in position to lead the SEC! I found a copy of Business Week magazine, dated February 22, 2010 this morning. I purposely saved it because of the cover: a pictur…
Reply to @mrc70: It is indeed too bad that you will probably get no response. But if enough plan participants raise a fuss, the plan trustees might be forced to do a thorough review of plan investment options. The new laws that took effect last y…
Actually about 32% of the fund is in other Price bond funds. That's neither bad nor good. It is just how the fund is run. As another poster noted, it is darned hard to compare funds in the go-anywhere bond group. We use BSIIX, LSBDX, OSTIX, and …
This is a strange collection of funds, but not unusual for more 401k plans. I always wonder who puts these lists together. Certainly not anyone with participants' interests in mind, or maybe just out of ignorance. In this case, it would appear to…
The fund has had a strong first year. I would want to know how the manager handled a period of market selloff and high volatility before I "added considerably" to it. M&P has a good overall record, but you are buying a manager, not a fund comp…
Readers of this board already know this, but there is a big difference between BALANCED funds and ALLOCATION funds. Traditional balanced funds have a fairly static mix of holdings, often 60% stocks and 40% bonds (VWELX) or 40% stocks and 605 bonds …
PAUIX PAUDX - we like this a lot and it is a core hold in many client accounts. But understand it is VERY different than OAKBX. The two managers could hardly be more different in their style.
Thornburg has done a great job with THDIX or THDAX. Average mkt cap is under $5 billion. Maybe not a really small cap, but compared to ODVYX' average mkt cap of 17 billion, it's teeny in average mkt cap, and its 1 and 3-yr numbers are very impress…
We have never had a recession without the Fed tightening money supply first. That does not mean it could not happen, but it would be one of those "This time, it's different" events. I am not very keen on that. Unless the Fed abruptly changes its …
You can, of course, do whatever you want with OAKBX. But I think you would be very shortsighted to dump it. Assuming that it is just one piece of your portfolio, this fund's manager has always managed for risk, NOT for capital appreciation. First…
You can, of course, do whatever you want with OAKBX. But I think you would be very shortsighted to dump it. Assuming that it is just one piece of your portfolio, this fund's manager has always managed for risk, NOT for capital appreciation. First…
I've been on both sides of this issue, having served as a board member of a non-profit who outsourced the investment decision making, and being the investment advisor for a non-profit organization's assets.
The most important thing you can do (and …
The comment that it is unusual for Americans to sell during market downturns is simply inaccurate. The "ordinary" folks always sell during downturns, much of it near the bottom. And most buying is done during bull markets, much of it near the top.…
Like, David, I am also concerned with the prospects for the traditional bond fund. I would prefer the managers have a pretty wide latitude in what they invest. For that reason, we use OSTIX, BSIIX, and LSBRX as core holds in most accounts. We hav…
Great presentation, Charles! We would separate out the balanced funds from the asset allocation and dynamic strategy (go anywhere) funds. For example, we look at VWELX differently than we do PAUIX, TIBIX, IVAEX, since the latter managers have more…
I would have to admit that FVALX has been a suprising disappointment. I know that Tom Forester will lag in bull markets. But the negative return year to-date is a bit strange. M* moved the fund from large cap value to long-short equity this year.…
Bond managers we have talked to recently tell us they will be glad to cover their coupon going forward. In other words, the gravy train of 10% and higher returns is over in their opinion. They believe they should be able to pay out their dividends…
Guess I am surprised that M* included Target Date funds, since these are mostly mandated allocations and do not allow much tweaking from the "manager". After all, that's why they are included in 401k plans. Folks know what they are getting.
On th…
Interesting choices. The comments following the article would indicate that Mr. Gundlach has followers as snarly as he is. Boy, were they indignant that he was not among the nominees. Relax, folks. There are several of my favorites who are not t…
We have not made any changes. LSBDX is a core hold in many client accounts. It is a unique fund in the way it has been run for 20+ years. Ms. Gaffney's leaving does not make us question Loomis, but it does cause us to look more closely at her new…
